A disturbing assault caught on cellphone video has ignited community outrage in Simi Valley, California, where residents are demanding hate crime charges after several white teenagers were seen chasing and beating a Black teen while shouting racial slurs, according to reports.

The attack took place around 11 p.m. on Aug. 1 at a Regal Cinemas theater. Police identified the victims as Michael Robinson, an 18-year-old Black teen, and an 18-year-old white teen.

The now-viral footage shows multiple assailants surrounding Robinson, punching and kicking him before chasing him through the parking lot. At one point, Robinson can be seen trying to ward off the group with a chair as they hurl racial slurs.

Robinson told KTTV the group first targeted his friend before turning on him.

“They end up pushing my head into a trash can, and they start hitting me in the back of my head, like this whole time I wasn’t getting hit anywhere else but the back in my head,” he said to KTTV's Gina Silva. “Honestly, I thought I was going to die. Because I know what happens when you get hit on the back of your head. You could have internal bleeding. You could have brain damage.”

He sustained a concussion, bruises, cuts, and a chipped tooth. Robinson said he didn’t know the attackers personally, though his friend had prior issues with them.

Police arrested four teenagers in connection with the assault and cited them for battery before releasing them to their parents. One of the suspects is the son of a Simi Valley police officer, who will not be involved in the case. Authorities have withheld the names of those arrested.

The incident has sparked widespread outrage. At a recent city council meeting, residents demanded that prosecutors pursue hate crime charges. “He was chased down, jumped and mocked for the color of his skin,” said Robinson’s friend Jared Jasson, according to the Ventura County Star. “This wasn’t a fight. It was a hate-driven attack, and it happened right here in our city. … When we ignore or excuse this kind of behavior, we’re sending a message that racism is allowed to exist in our community.”

Robinson’s attorney, Jamal Tooson, told CBS News the motive was clear. “He was the only African-American, and that’s why this is a targeted hate crime. As they were attacking him, they were yelling racial slurs. It is crystal clear what transpired.”